JOS – Updated!!!

I did it, I finally found some down time to update JOS to work with current libraries from Adafruit. Below is a link to the new code on Github. A few notes to look at are listed below.

First, this is code for the Touch Shield, but it can easily be changed to the breakout board, and don’t forget to uncomment the ‘#define USE_ADAFRUIT_SHIELD_PINOUT’ line in Adafruit_TFTLCD.h file.

Also, this sketch has pin 3 setup as the backlight on the shield. This way you have PWM control over the backlight. You can accomplish this by cutting the VCC trace and soldering the PIN3 jumper on the back of the shield. You can read more on how to do that here.

This sketch has EEPROM settings, if you have not used them before, the values will be zero and need to be set. There are notes about this in the sketch on lines 92 & 93.

If you don’t know what JOS is, you can check it out here. (What’s a JOS anyway?)

Happy sketching! The code is here: https://github.com/jersagfast/JOS—TFT-Menu-System

RGB LCD Arduino Intervalometer

I am getting ready to sell some kits and wanted a good way to photograph the assembly without fumbling around trying to hold a camera in one hand and a project in the other. The answer? An intervalometer. A device that can send an IR signal to my Nikon, triggering the shutter. The video above explains all of the features including; automatic delay calculation, auto stop, multiple LCD and LED feedback options, Li-Po charging, FTDI headers, and manual control via button or plug-in foot switch.

This project will work with most Nikon DSLR cameras without changing anything, but can easily be adapted to work with Canon, Sony, or any camera that will accept an IR remote.

You can get nice RGB LCD’s, as well as the foot switch at Adafruit Industries. They even have positive character, negative character (the one used in this project), positive graphic, and negative graphic versions!

Arduino intervalometer code

Eagle intervalometer schematic (Eagle format)

Eagle intervalometer schematic (PDF format)

Intervalometer Parts List (Numbers format)

Intervalometer Parts List (Excel format)

Intervalometer Parts List (PDF format)

Controlling high power (or high number of) LED’s with an Arduino

A while ago I posted about my bench lights, and have gotten a number of request for schematics and code. I’ll gladly put the code up, but I also wanted to explain what I did so that others can create their own, or at least change my design up as they wish. The transistors I’m using are TIP122’s. You can find the data sheet here. They will switch a lot of power, but keep in mind, they need to have adequate cooling if you are going to push them hard. Always remember, fire = bad.

I covered the basic schematic for a few LED’s in the video above, but if you have any questions, feel free to post them in the comments and I will answer as quickly as I can.

You can download the original (controller with LCD and hard buttons) code here.

You can also download the newer (serial controlled – adjustable level) code here.

Just a note, I will be using Vimeo from now on, but I will still put all my videos on YouTube as well.

Tic Tac Touch

OK, so I haven’t posted in a while because I have been working on some bigger projects, but yesterday, I took a two hour break and made a 2 player tic tac toe game. I did this with an Arduino and a 2.8″ touchshield from Adafruit.com. It’s pretty basic tic tac toe, and has score tracking, game logic (you can’t go twice in a row, and telling you if you win), and the ability to consume a chunk of time playing tic tac toe with my son. Below is the code, feel free to hack modify etc. If you play against a smart person (or yourself), you will have lots of Mosfet eye games! 🙂

Download the code here. (Arduino 22 .pde file)